Moving with the times, part 3: Chain waxing

Chain waxing is another of those things being pushed far and wide on the internet. 

A messy oily chain is one of the worst things in cycling, especially if you’re transporting a bike in the back of a car. No matter how hard you try, a chain always gets mucky. Using wax as a lubricant is widely touted as a solution not only for a clean chain but for increased longevity of transmission components.

I've looked around the internet and talked to other cyclists about chain waxing, and certainly those riders who've adopted chain waxing are enthusiastic about its benefits. As  it turns out there are two approaches to waxing chains: fullblown waxing where the chain is 'cooked' in molten wax, and allowed to cool before re-fitting to the bike; and 'drip waxing' where an emulsion of wax is applied to the chain as if it were a regular lubricant. Both approached require existing grease and oil to be removed from the chain first. Especially the sticky grease on a brand new chain.

There are different ways of cleaning a chain with degreasers or solvents. I've always felt that the solvent approach is a hassle since you'll end up with dirty solvent which could be hazardous or difficult to dispose of (or both). I shake up the chain in a container of strong degreaser, rinse thoroughly in water and dry off before waxing. As an aside, some chain manufacturers sell chains that are pre-waxed, often intended for use with their own drip wax.

My first move into waxing was with one of the commercially available 'drip waxes': the slightly unfortunately named Squirt. I used Squirt on my TT and summer bikes. It seems to work pretty well, though it does lead to a bit of a waxy buildup on the derailleur jockey wheels. It is considerably cleaner than regular chain lube. Accordingly, I cleaned up the chains on three bikes principally intended for use in drier weather. I also decided to do the same for our touring tandem, as we transport this by car.

I found that the lubricant worked pretty well on the whole, at least for those drier conditions. However in the case of the touring tandem, I found that the drip on wax wasn't really suitable for hours of riding in the wet, as you so often encounter while touring in Scotland. The day after cycling in hours of drizzle, I found the chain was quite rusty.

I was a bit reluctant to go the whole hog and buy a chain waxer setup. Many of the big name brands seem quite expensive, but more reasonably priced devices can be bought on Amazon. 

Basically devices like this have a thermostatically controlled crockpot (a bit like a small slow cooker to heat up the wax: you hold the chain using a flexible wire and drop it in the pot full of melted wax before hanging it to drip and set.

This seems to work reasonably efficiently with only a few drops of spilled wax hardening on the work bench. Immediately after waxing, the chain is really quite stiff, but a bit of flexing releases much of the excess wax. I also found that reconnecting quick links was a bit harder due to wax on the pins and holes - with a bit of attention that's no real issue. I've only had a few rides on waxed chains, and I would say that firstly, the performance of the chain improves after a few hundered metres of cycling, presumably as a resulyt of excess wax flaking off, and secondly that after 50 or 60 km, the chain is still really clean. It's now autumn and heading to winter, so these bikes probably won't see a lot of use for a few months. At the moment the juty is still out but the signs are good.

The waxing procedure is supposed to last about 400km, so in time this may turn into more of a hassle that could outweigh the benefits. I certainly doubt that I'd treat all the bikes this way. I'm not sure how good chain waxing would be in persistently wet conditions, but time may tell.

Overall, I think chain waxing may be one of the better innovations, and I'll keep doing it on the dry weather bikes, at least until I discover any unexpected problems.